Ackman No Longer Supports Sale Of General Growth Properties Inc (GGP)

Bill Ackman and his Pershing Square Capital Management no longer want to sell their $271.9 million worth of warrants in General Growth Properties Inc (NYSE:GGP). Pershing Square filed an amended 13D with the Securities and Exchange Commission for General Growth Properties Inc (NYSE:GGP) and sent a letter to Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (NYSE:BAM) (TSE:BAM.A) CEO, Bruce Flatt, saying it was now against the sale.

Pershing Square had agreed to sell the warrants to Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (NYSE:BAM) (TSE:BAM.A) to settle a dispute between the two shareholders of GGP. As part of that deal, Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (NYSE:BAM) (TSE:BAM.A) would then sell the warrants, which amounts to the ability to purchase 18.4 million shares of GGP stock back to GGP at the same price it purchased those shares for.

In addition, Pershing Square had agreed to limit its ownership stake to less than 9.9 percent and become a passive shareholder, while Brookfield Asset Management Inc.(NYSE:BAM) (TSE:BAM.A) would keep its ownership in GGP to 45 percent. FactSet indicates that currently Brookfield holds 38 percent of GGP’s shares, while Pershing Square holds a passive 8 percent stake in the company.

Ackman has been pushing GGP to sell itself, although Brookfield wanted to avoid a sale and instead try to improve the more than 100 malls it owns across the U.S. Pershing Square. Brookfield saved GGP from bankruptcy two years ago and helped it sell off assets to become profitable.

Shares of General Growth Properties Inc (NYSE:GGP) were mostly flat in Wednesday trading, although in Thursday premarket trades they dropped almost 4 percent.